Crimes of Passion
by EmAino
Summary: After being framed for murder, Danny is sent to prison where he meets an old acquaintance of Ed's. Mike and Ed race to figure out who framed Danny and why.
1. Chapter 1

Author's notes: Dedicated to my girls, Mack (Lil Grrl Bleu) and Leah (Swiperfox). Love you chicas! Also, I don't own the characters and not claiming to.

* * *

Crimes of Passion

* * *

Chapter One.

* * *

As the sound of the door slamming shut reached his ears, the tall, brown-haired, former Marine lieutenant wearily threw himself upon the bottom of the two bunks in the small room. Staring at the thick, wooden slats of the bunk above him, Danny McCoy could do little but sigh and wonder how he had ended up in this particular cell inside Nevada State Prison. Folding his arms behind his head, in an effort to make the pillow beneath him more comfortable, Danny sighed again in disgust at the mere sight of the orange jumpsuit he was now wearing. He closed his eyes, hoping to drift off to sleep.

* * *

"We, the jury, find the defendant guilty." the jury foreman announced in an expressionless voice, sending a wave of activity throughout the courtroom. Sobs and cheers of joy could be heard from the upper right side of the courtroom while the left was somber and almost silent. 

Closing his eyes, Danny wished that it was entirely silent as the only sounds he could hear were cameras flashing at him to catch his reaction, and the sobbing of his best friend since childhood, Mary Connell, behind him. Feeling a hand on his shoulder, McCoy looked up to see an older, gray-haired man with blue eyes standing behind him. Sympathy and anger were both clear on his face.

"I didn't do this, Ed." Danny said quietly, standing to face his boss and mentor. "You know that I didn't do this."

"Relax, kid," a quiet Ed commanded, "I know that you didn't." He gripped Danny's hand in a motion of support. "I promise that come hell or high water, I'm going to clear your name and get you out. I want you to keep that in mind, okay?" A smile appeared on his face. "No matter what happens, you keep that in mind."

* * *

"I'll remember that, Ed." Danny whispered, opening his eyes as he'd rather not relive what had happened that same afternoon. The grief on his friends' faces, the sound of Mary sobbing, and the anger he felt at being both wrongly accused and convicted of a murder he didn't commit hadn't left him; he had only managed to block those things out for the time being. 

The sound of the cell door opening roused Danny from his thoughts. As he sat up on his bunk, he noticed an older, dark and gray haired man with a moustache and beard had walked in. Like himself, this new man also wore the orange jumpsuit of Nevada State Prison. As the guard shut the door behind him, he smiled at Danny.

"So," the man said calmly, walking over and sitting down next to Danny. "I presume that you're my new cellmate?"

"Ye…yeah." a nervous Danny nodded, every horror story of prison that he had ever heard beginning to play in his mind.

"Relax, kid!" the dark-haired man laughed, clapping Danny on the back. "I much, much prefer the female side of the species to the male." With a smile, he offered Danny his hand. "Antonio Malocchio."

"Danny McCoy." Danny replied, shaking the man's hand.

"Oh, yeah." Antonio nodded in recognition. "You're the security guy from the Montecito who slept with that woman and killed her husband. I've…"

"I didn't kill him." an angry Danny spat, looking at the ground. "I don't…didn't even know the guy."

"Course not." Antonio smiled before getting to his feet. "Ed Deline's not the type to hire adulterers or murderers."

"You know Ed?" Danny asked, raising his head.

"We were in the Company together." Antonio nodded, looking out the cell door at the many cells in front of them. His brown eyes watching every move the prisoners across the hall made.

"How does a former CIA agent land in a place like this?" a curious Danny asked, watching the man.

"Let's just say that Ed stuck to a higher road than I did when we got out." Antonio replied, glancing back at the younger man. "Not everyone who worked for the company was or is a saint, you know."

"I know." Danny nodded, thinking mainly of Jack Keller, Ed's former CIA protégé who would seemingly do anything to make a quick buck. "So, what exactly are you in for?"

"Assault and a few other things." Antonio answered quickly, giving Danny the distinct impression that he didn't want to talk about it. Turning on his heel, the older man looked once more at Danny. "Anyway, seeing as how I owe Ed a favor from those days, I'm going to keep my eye on you while you're in here." He crossed his arms across his chest. "I've got some pull around this joint, so I'll make sure that no one gives you any trouble."

"Thanks." an appreciative Danny smiled, "That's really nice of you."

"Don't mention it, kid." Antonio replied, climbing up onto his bunk. "I mean, if you really are innocent," Looking at Danny, he paused for a moment. "And if I had to wager, I'd say that you are, you don't deserve to be in such a hellhole as this anyway."

"I shouldn't be in here long." Danny remarked, lying down in his bed. "Ed's promised me that he's going to work around the clock to clear my name."

"Well," Antonio chuckled as the footsteps of the guards approaching could be heard. "You couldn't be in better hands."

* * *

"We got anything yet, Mikey?" a bad-tempered Ed asked as he marched into the surveillance room of the Montecito. Directly after the trial, he had called Mike Cannon, one of his employees and Danny's friend, and told him to drop anything and everything he had been doing. Between the pair of them, Deline knew that they would find something that would prove that Danny was innocent. 

"Nothing yet, Mr. D." Mike sighed, rubbing his bald head. "I haven't located the smoking gun yet." He handed some computer printouts to Ed. "The only thing that I have been able to find is that Mr. and Mrs. Richard Hewitson, at least, are and were real people." Knowing Ed's next question, the black man looked at his boss. "Both have clean criminal records too."

"Damn." Ed muttered, stroking his chin. Sighing, the gray-haired man waved his hand towards the computer screen. "Keep digging, Mikey. There's got to be something that would drive these people to frame Danny."

"I don't know, Ed." Mike replied, shaking his head. "Without him having a rock-solid alibi, it's going to be very hard to prove that Danny didn't do this."

"Shouldn't be too hard to prove the truth." Ed remarked before going into his office and closing the door.

To be continued...


	2. Chapter 2

Author's Notes: Thanks for all of the reviews!

* * *

Chapter Two

* * *

"Morning, kid." Antonio's voice greeted from somewhere in the cell as Danny started to stir. As he opened his brown eyes, McCoy could see the older, dark-haired and bearded man standing by the door. "How'd you sleep?" 

"I feel like I've slept on rocks." Danny groaned, noticing that his joints and back were killing him.

"Really?" Antonio asked with a loud chuckle. "Well, welcome to life in the state pen." His laughter subsided. "Get up and get a move on, will ya? We're supposed to leave for breakfast in a few."

"Great." a sarcastic Danny rolled his eyes, not looking forward to his first meeting with the general prison population.

* * *

"You sure that this is edible?" Danny asked Antonio quietly, gesturing to the tray in his hands. The ex-Marine lieutenant was trying to do anything to take his mind off of the stares he was getting from the other prisoners in the crowded mess hall. As he looked into the fascinated eyes that surrounded him, Danny began to feel like he was the breakfast that the hungry prisoners were waiting for.

"Relax, kid." Antonio chuckled as they sat down at an empty table. "They're always interested whenever "new meat" shows its face." Suddenly, the older man's attention was diverted above Danny, and a fierce look appeared in his eyes and a matching tone in his voice. "I meant what I said though, Danny. As long as you're in here, I'm going to take care of you."

Turning his head, Danny could see a trio of men slowly backing away from him, clearly frightened off by Antonio's words. Once they deemed that they were a safe distance away, the men headed back to their table.

"Thanks." Danny said, smiling at Antonio.

Just as Antonio was about to reply, a bald, short yet muscular Hispanic man and an overweight African American man, who was even taller than Danny, sat down at the table. Both looked at Danny with a look of curiosity.

"Who's the kid?" the Hispanic man asked Antonio, nodding his head at Danny.

"This is Danny McCoy, my new cell-mate." Antonio introduced before nodding at the Hispanic man. "Danny, this is Ramon Gomez," He nodded at the other man. "And Landon Williams. They're friends of mine."

"Nice to meet you." Danny smiled, nodding his head.

"Good to meet you too." Landon grinned, offering his hand across the table. Danny quickly regretted shaking it as he found that the black man had quite a firm handshake to say the least.

"So, what are you in for?" an interested Ramon asked, looking at Danny.

"Murder." Danny sighed heavily, causing Ramon and Landon to laugh.

"No way in hell!" Landon chuckled, shaking his head. "Ain't no way in hell that a pretty boy like you could murder somebody!"

"Yeah." a laughing Ramon agreed, "You're too much of a lightweight to do something like that, man! What are you really in here for?"

"The man's in for what he said he's in for." a serious Antonio said, silencing the other two.

"No way." a stunned Ramon said, looking at Danny.

"But I didn't actually do it." Danny added, putting his head down on the table. "For some reason, I was framed by someone."

"You really think that someone would do that to you?" a curious Landon asked, raising his eyebrow.

"I was thinking about that." Antonio said, swallowing a bite of the toast they had all been given. His dark eyes looked at Danny. "Given your line of work, you can't exactly be short on enemies, Danny. I know that there's also got to be people out there who would set you up to get back at Ed for doing God knows what." Pausing, he looked directly into Danny's eyes. "Now, do you know if anyone would want to get revenge on you for something you did outside of work?"

"No." Danny shook his head, "Never given anyone reason to."

"Hmm." Antonio nodded, clearly thinking.

"I wouldn't worry, kid." Landon said, clapping Danny on the back as they all got up from the table. "With Antonio working on this, you'll be out of here before you can say Nevada State."

"Yeah." Ramon reassured with a grin. "You're in good hands."

"McCoy!" a guard said, motioning to Danny as the prisoners headed out of the mess hall. Curiously, the tall, brown-haired former Marine lieutenant walked over. "You've got a visitor."

* * *

As he walked into the visitation room, Danny could see the sad, serious face of Ed Deline sitting behind the glass in one of the booths. The older man's blue eyes seemed to be focused on the metal handcuffs that the guards were taking off of McCoy's wrists, which the brown-haired man rubbed as he sat down. 

"Hey." he greeted quietly, nodding in recognition.

"Hey." Ed replied, nodding his own head. "How are you holding up?"

"Well," Danny grinned, shrugging his sore shoulders. "It's not exactly the high rollers' suite at the Montecito, but…"

There was a brief pause in the conversation as both men chuckled at that remark. A laugh which both suspected was much needed by the other.

"How are the other kids treating you?" Ed inquired, bringing them back to the serious matter at hand.

"Good, good." Danny nodded, "My cell-mate said that he actually used to work with you in the Company." He paused for a brief moment. "Antonio Malocchio?"

"Ah," Ed smiled, nodding his head. "Good, old Tony."

"So," Danny assumed, looking at his mentor. "You do know him?"

"No," a sarcastic Ed said with a teasing grin. "I just go around saying that about every random stranger." Shaking his head, the older man dropped all joking from his voice. "Yeah, he was an acquaintance of mine back in the old days. You said he's your cell-mate?"

"Yeah." Danny nodded, "He said something about repaying you a favor by looking after me while I'm in here." The brown-haired man paused for a moment. "Speaking of that, are you any closer to getting me out, Ed?"

"I'm sorry, man." Ed sighed, shaking his head slowly. "We're working as hard as we can on it, but Mikey and I have yet to find a smoking gun or anything that would even lead up to one."

"Damn it." a wincing Danny whispered, wishing that Ed had better news.

"Now, I know that we've been over this again and again." Ed apologized, leaning closer to the glass window that separated them. "But you're absolutely, 100 percent sure that you don't or didn't know Richard Hewitson or his wife, Candace Hewitson?"

"No." Danny shook his head vehemently. "I told you that I didn't know them or anyone even related to them!" Realizing that a guard was now looking his way, the brown-haired man calmed himself down. "I would have told you before now if I had."

"I know, I know." Ed reassured, putting his hand up. "I just thought I'd ask in case you suddenly remembered something or something like that." He blinked. "And you are absolutely certain that you just came home after your shift at the Montecito and went to sleep?"

"Positive." Danny nodded firmly. "I mean I know that that doesn't explain how my blood was found there or anything, but…"

"No, it doesn't." Ed sighed, sitting back in his seat. "Someone clearly had it in for you, son. Someone who covered up his or her tracks pretty damn well."

* * *

"Damn it." a frustrated Mike Cannon growled, drinking what seemed to be his third cup of coffee for that day. His brown eyes fixed on the computer screen in front of him, searching for anything that could help get Danny out of prison. The bald, African American man took a drink as he looked at the names and vital statistics of Richard Hewitson's relatives went flashing by, searching for any viable connection to Danny. Suddenly, something jumped out at Mike from the screen, nearly causing him to spit the coffee right back out. 

"How in the hell did this never get revealed during the trial?" the black man asked, his mouth hanging open in shock.

To be continued...


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Three

* * *

"Hey, Danny Boy." a friendly Antonio greeted, waiting for Danny as the younger man entered the prison yard after his visit with Ed. Most of the prisoners were either playing basketball (Danny could see that this was where Landon and Ramon had vanished to), or just sitting around in various groups talking to each other. 

"Hey." Danny replied, smiling at the older man.

"You have a good visit?" the darker-haired man asked, leading McCoy over to a bare spot near a wall.

"Yeah, it was Ed." Danny said as they sat down. "He remembered you."

"I'm kind of hard to forget." Antonio joked, shrugging his shoulders.

"Yeah." Danny chuckled, "Unfortunately, I guess that I'm not any closer to getting out of here though." He let out a heavy sigh. "He and Mike haven't found anything."

"Eh, I'm sure that they'll find something." Antonio replied, trying to keep the younger man's spirits raised. He clapped a hand on Danny's shoulder. "I'm sure that whomever did this to you was bound to leave some sort of clue behind. It would take a genius to stump Ed Deline."

Just as Danny was about to reply, a sweaty Landon and Ramon, having just run over from the basketball court, sat down in front of the pair.

"What's going on?" Ramon asked with a grin.

"Nothing," Antonio replied, waving his hand in front of his nose. "Except for you guys killing us with your stench." He closed his dark eyes. "God! I hate the smell of sweat!"

"Yeah." a laughing Danny agreed, pulling the open part of his orange uniform up on his face. "You think that you guys would be considerate enough to take a shower first!"

"Look at this man here!" Landon teased, moving so that he was sitting right next to Danny. "A day or so in the pen, and he thinks that he's a big shot!" McCoy barely had time to react before he felt the big, black man grab him and starting roughly messing with his hair. "Come here, you!"

"Ow! Landon!" Danny said, trying to push the big, black man away. "Knock it off!"

"Who's a big shot now, huh?" Landon taunted, "Who's a big shot now?"

"Get him, Lando!" Ramon encouraged from nearby.

"Let me go!" Danny replied, getting to his feet. He felt a thud against his back and realized that he had accidentally bumped into someone. "Sorry."

"You damn well better be." the person behind him warned.

Turning around, Danny could see the trio of men from breakfast that morning standing there with two other men. Although Danny was no weakling himself, all of the men looked like they could snap him in half with one hand. From behind him, he could hear Antonio, Landon and Ramon get to their feet.

"Back off." Antonio warned, putting a hand on Danny's shoulder.

"What?" the speaker said, not scared in the slightest. "This guy your bitch or something, Malocchio?"

"Can't blame him." one of the two new men chuckled, putting his hand to Danny's cheek. "He's the prettiest one I've seen come in here in awhile." He grinned at Antonio. "You ever get bored with him, let me know. I'd love to have a turn."

"Get your hand off me!" an angry Danny spat, throwing the man's hand off of him.

"Big mistake, pretty boy." the man growled before punching Danny straight in the gut, which was enough to send the former Marine lieutenant reeling backwards.

Out of the corner of his eye, the trying-to-catch-his-breath Danny saw Antonio rush forward and tackle the man to the ground. As the dark-haired, former CIA agent unleashed a flurry of punches on his opponent, Danny could hear scuffling noises from behind him, leading him to believe that Landon and Ramon had also started to fight. Clearly happy to have some excitement, the prisoners in the general area whooped in appreciation and shouted encouraging remarks at the various fighters.

"Don't think that you're getting out of this, pretty boy." the man Danny had bumped into growled as McCoy got back to his feet. The man aimed a punch at Danny's face, but the Marine saw it coming and dodged in the nick of time. Gritting his teeth, the former Marine lieutenant punched his attacker in the abdomen and followed up by a strike to the head.

"I didn't intend to." Danny grinned at his opponent.

"Danny!" a worried Antonio called out from somewhere behind him.

Right before he could turn around to see what his cellmate wanted, Danny felt something hard collide with the back of his head. Letting out a cry of pain, the brown-haired man sank to his knees before falling into darkness.

* * *

"Damn." a furious, yet quiet Ed shook his head. His blue eyes fixed on a nearby monitor, which displayed the information that Mike had found out. "So, not only was this Douglas Ainsworth Richard Hewitson's cousin, but he was also in Danny's unit?" 

"Yeah." Mike replied, standing in front of the desk. "I managed to get some of his records, and it's clearly stated that he was killed in that air strike that Danny called in." A grin appeared on the African American man's face. "So, now, we've got a possible motive for framing Danny."

"And no actual proof that anyone did." an exhausted Ed sighed, rubbing his forehead slowly. Dropping his hand, he looked at his employee. "Keep digging stuff up on the former Mr. and Mrs. Richard Hewitson, will ya? I got the feeling that there's more to them than just innocent victims."

"Got it, Mr. D." Mike nodded, heading back to the surveillance room. As he walked through the sliding glass door, a red-haired woman entered from the other side. "Hey, Mary."

"Hi Mike." a quiet Mary said, not looking at him. Realizing that she was alone with Ed, her voice suddenly took on a sad tremble. "Ed…"

"Sweetheart?" a concerned Ed inquired, getting up from his desk and walking over to the woman. "What's wrong?"

"The prison called me." Mary swallowed, looking at the older man. "Danny's been hurt."

To be continued...


	4. Chapter 4

Author's Notes: Thanks for all of the kind reviews.

* * *

Chapter Four

* * *

"Where the hell is the doctor around this place?" an irritable Ed asked as a guard led him and Mary to the doorway that led into the infirmary at Nevada State Prison. Remaining silent, Mary just continued to look around at the new environment. The red-haired woman could only think of how depressing the prison seemed. A final, controlling aura seemed to radiate from the stone walls and cement floors that seemed to be everywhere. A tear fell from one of her brown eyes as she realized that her best friend could spend the rest of his life in such a place; the best friend who had always been her knight in shining armor. 

The door opened, jolting Mary from her thoughts. A gray-haired, chubby man wearing a white doctor's coat walked through it, and looked at the two people standing in front of him.

"Are you two here about Danny McCoy?" the man asked gently.

"Yes." Ed nodded, taking and holding onto Mary's hand.

"How is he, doctor?" a quiet Mary asked.

"Well," the doctor replied, looking down at a clipboard in his hands. "he's got a pretty bad concussion, so he's going to have to spend overnight in here, and then a couple of days in medical segregation." He looked up at the pair and smiled. "But I expect him to make a full recovery."

"That's good." Mary sighed in relief, "Can I see him?"

"The warden's in with him right now." the doctor shook his head, "Your friend was injured during a prison fight, so the warden's interviewing him to get his side of what happened."

"A prison fight?" a stunned Mary repeated, shaking her head. "That doesn't sound like Danny at all."

"Kid wouldn't fight unless he had a choice." Ed agreed quietly, feeling the sudden urge to break something out of anger. He had been hoping to get Danny out of this place before the younger man could make any enemies or experience the darker side of prison.

"Ah," the doctor said as the door opened and a dark-haired man that Ed recognized as Mike Budge, the warden of Nevada State Prison stepped out. "I guess he's done with his interview." Turning, the gray-haired doctor smiled at Mary. "You can go in and see him now."

"Ed?" a curious Mary said, looking at the older man.

"Go in, sweetheart." Ed encouraged, not taking his eyes off the warden. "I'll be in in a few minutes."

* * *

Hearing footsteps across the cement floor, Danny groaned and kept his eyes shut. The brown-haired man wished that whomever it was would just go away as he already had answered the warden's extensive questions about what had happened. Not that McCoy could remember what had happened due to getting apparently hit on the head with a wrench smuggled in from work duty in the facility's license plate factory. Letting out another groan, the tall, former Marine lieutenant rolled onto his side, hoping the medication he had been given would work against his pain. 

"Danny?" a gentle voice said, bringing him out of his thoughts and filling him with a happiness he hadn't known for the couple of days he had been in this hellhole. He opened his brown eyes to see a very familiar red-haired woman at his bedside. "How are you feeling?"

"Mary." he whispered, happy to see his best friend since childhood.

"The prison called and told me what happened." Mary explained, knowing that Danny would want to know what she was doing there. A smile crossed her features. "Somebody apparently listed me as his emergency contact."

"I should have listed Ed." Danny sighed, closing his eyes momentarily. "You shouldn't be here, Mary. You shouldn't have to see any of this."

"I wanted to see you." Mary shook her head, sitting down on the edge of the bed. She ran a slow hand through his brown hair. "I wanted to make sure that you were okay."

"Besides the nuclear war going on in my head?" Danny groaned, wincing and moving around to find a comfortable position. He could hear Mary sigh in sympathy as she watched him, and he flashed a small, reassuring grin at her. "I'm okay, Mary. This is the worst that's happened to me."

"You shouldn't even be in here, Danny." Mary replied as a sob escaped her. "You should be at the Montecito with the rest of us, chasing down bad guys and flirting with every hot woman you see."

"Hey." Danny promised, gently reaching up and putting a hand on her cheek. "I'm going to be out of here before you know it, all right? I'm sure that Ed and Mikey are working as hard as they can to get me out of here, so you know that I'm in good hands."

"I know." Mary nodded, wrapping her hand around his.

* * *

"So, what happened?" a curious Ed asked after following the warden into his office nearby. The gray-haired man shut the door behind him and watched the other man sink into his chair. "Come on, Mikey. We're old pals." 

"I can't tell you much, Ed." the warden said, looking at him. "God knows that if it gets out that I told you anything, I'll lose my job." He sighed heavily. "Your young friend was enjoying free time out in the yard when he accidentally backed into another prisoner."

"The guy started a fight just because Danny backed into him?" Ed repeated, shaking his head. "Touchy."

"Well, I happened to look up the info on the guy in question." the warden explained, folding his hands on his stomach. "You guys busted him at the Montecito a while back. Seems like he's never gotten over it."

"Damn." Ed swore quietly, fighting the urge to kick something.

"Anyway," the warden continued, "this guy obviously planned to attack your friend. He hit him in the back of the head with a wrench smuggled in from work duty."

Saying nothing, Ed just narrowed his eyes and gripped the back of a nearby chair. His face starting to take on a more crimson tone, and his jaw was clenched tightly together. He wanted to find the guy that had hurt Danny and hit him a lot harder with said wrench.

"Take it easy, Ed." the warden said, noticing Deline's demeanor. "We added time to the guy's sentence for this little incident and he's been placed in administrative segregation for the next few days."

"It's not enough, Mike." Ed shook his head quietly, "That bastard needs to pay."

"Look," the warden sighed, "Why don't you go visit your friend? Visiting hours are almost over." "Nah," Ed shook his head again, smiling as a thought crossed his mind. "Danny Boy's got enough company right now." He looked at the warden. "But could you arrange it so that I could see another prisoner?"

"Sure." the warden nodded, "Who?"

* * *

"It's been awhile, Ed." Antonio grinned as he sat down on the other side of the glass in the visiting room. The dark-haired man's eyes surveyed his former CIA acquaintance carefully and a chuckle escaped him. "You gotta lay off the hair dye and Botox though, man." He shook his head. "You're fighting a losing battle." 

"I see that all of these years in this place haven't changed you." Ed laughed, waving Antonio's comment off. "You're still one hell of a smartass, Tony."

"How's Danny?" a concerned Antonio asked, leaning back in his chair.

"As good as can be expected." Ed nodded, "Apparently, he's going to stay overnight in the infirmary before spending a few days in medical segregation."

"Tell him the next time you see him that the cell's pretty lonely without him." a sympathetic Antonio sighed.

"How's he doing in here?" a curious Ed wondered.

"Good." Antonio replied, looking at his friend. "It's not uncommon for guys to break by their second day in here, but I don't know if Danny ever will." Shaking his head, the dark and gray haired man smiled. "He's really confident that you and this Mike will get him out of here."

"Well," Ed shrugged, "I'm planning on it." He smiled at his former colleague. "Thanks for keeping your eye on him, man. I really appreciate it."

"Don't mention it, man." Antonio waved off, "Danny Boy's a good kid. It's my pleasure to help him out."

"Look," Ed sighed, leaning forward. "We need to quit beating around the bush." His blue eyes looked directly into the dark ones of Antonio. "We both know why I'm really here."

"You want me to take care of the guys that did this to Danny." a knowing Antonio nodded, sitting up straight in his chair. "Consider it done, my friend. I'll make sure that those ass clowns pay ten fold for what they did to him." He smiled at Deline. "You just concentrate on getting the kid out here, all right?"

"Grazie." Ed thanked in Italian.

"Nessun problema." Antonio replied with a wave of his hand.

To be continued...


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter Five

* * *

Hearing hushed voices, the sleeping Danny slowly awoke from his slumber. His brown eyes searched the darkened prison infirmary for a source until he saw a light on in one of the curtained off areas nearby. Weakly, the former Marine lieutenant slowly lifted his aching head from the pillow in order to listen better. 

"Time of death, 9:36." a voice that Danny recognized as the prison doctor sighed sadly, "Did you notify the family about what happened?"

"Not yet." the equally sad voice of the warden replied, "I'm not sure that I even have the heart to tell them everything." There was a brief pause. "To tell them that their son's murder was just another case of prison justice isn't something that I'm looking forward to."

"So, Malocchio, Gomez and Williams have been placed in Ad Seg, right?" the curious doctor said.

"Oh no." a stunned Danny whispered, realizing that they were now talking about his newfound friends. The brown-haired man knew that they had gotten revenge for what had happened to him, but it sounded like they had taken it a bit too far.

"Yeah," the warden suddenly sighed, jolting Danny from his thoughts. "And have had time added to their sentences." He paused momentarily. "I also have a strong suspicion that a certain someone on the outside helped put this idea in Malocchio's head, but I don't dare do anything about it."

"That Ed Deline guy that was here visiting McCoy?" the doctor guessed as Danny started to hear their footsteps dying away.

"Yeah." a weary-sounding warden replied.

"What in the hell did you do, Ed?" Danny whispered to himself, resting his head back against the pillow.

* * *

"I may have found something that will get Danny out of prison before he can become Danielle to someone!" a cheerful Mike announced a couple of days later as he walked into Ed's office.

"Your choice of language leaves a lot to be desired." a disgusted Ed replied, slowly setting down his coffee cup. "What do you got, Mikey?"

"Well, Danny's friend, Kitty, sent me some video of a red Ford Taurus belonging to Candace Hewitson making frequent," Mike informed, pausing for a second. "Almost daily trips to Henderson. However, just this past week, she's switched and has been ending up in Hawthorne, Nevada."

"Well, she could be visiting family or friends." Ed pointed out, gesturing with his hand. "I mean the woman just lost her husband, Mike. It should be a pretty rough time for her."

"Now, see, I thought about that." Mike admitted, nodding his head. "However, the video shows Mrs. Hewitson pulling into the parking lot of a couple of hotels in both the Henderson and Hawthorne areas." He looked at Ed. "What kind of friends or family would let the grieving widow check into a hotel?"

"The cheap kind." an honest Ed replied, leaning back in his seat.

"Your sense of humor never ceases to amaze me, Mr. D." Mike smiled, shaking his head. "Anyway, the thing is she's never shown checking into these hotels. She's always going into a room."

"So, she's meeting someone." an interested Ed said, suddenly sitting up. "Mike, take the day off tomorrow and follow her up to Hawthorne. I want to know who this mystery person is."

"Got it, Mr. D." Mike nodded.

* * *

Hearing the cell door open and close, a half-asleep Danny barely lifted his head off of the pillow of his bunk. He had just been moved from medical segregation back into his old cell; timing which seemed to coincide with the general prison population heading to their cells for lights out. With a smile, Antonio walked over and sat down on the side of Danny's bed. 

"Hey, kid." he greeted quietly, "How are ya?"

"Tired." an honest Danny replied, closing his eyes. "Still sore."

"Well, that was quite the hit you took." Antonio laughed, clapping Danny on the shoulder. "I'm just glad that it didn't kill you. Ed would have had my head!"

"What did you guys do to the guys that did this to me?" Danny asked suddenly, being reminded of what he had overheard in the infirmary."

"Oh, that." Antonio replied casually with some distance in his voice. "Don't worry about that, kid."

"What do you mean don't worry about it?" a confused Danny asked, sitting up slightly. "You guys killed someone!"

"So, he died." an interested Antonio assumed, nodding his head.

"I didn't want you guys to kill him." Danny pointed out, "In fact, I didn't want you guys to do anything."

"That's not the way it works around here, kid." Antonio shrugged, "Somebody starts something with one of yours, you finish it with one of theirs. Not pretty and not technically legal, but that's the way it is in here."

"But not out there." Danny shook his head, "Not out there where Ed is."

"Ed had nothing to do with this." Antonio chuckled.

"Don't lie to me." a serious Danny said, "I overheard the warden mention how Ed visited you this afternoon." Thinking of his mentor's old-fashioned mobster ways, the brown-haired man sighed. "I can only imagine that Ed put this idea into your head."

"Honestly, Danny," Antonio replied, climbing up onto his bunk. "I would have done if I hadn't talked to Ed." He laid fully back. "It's the just the way things work in here." Danny could hear a yawn escape him. "And just the way things work for old spooks. You get some sleep now, all right?"

"All right." Danny reluctantly agreed, knowing that that was Antonio's way of saying he didn't want to discuss things further. He had to laugh quietly to himself about the similarities between the older man and Ed. "Goodnight, Antonio."

"Night, kid." a quiet Antonio replied as the lights in the cell shut off.

* * *

"Well, look what the cat dragged in!" an ecstatic Landon exclaimed as Antonio and Danny made their way over to the table for breakfast the following morning. The large African American man stood up when the pair arrived and engulfed the younger, brown-haired in a hug. Suddenly feeling like he couldn't breathe, Danny coughed. "Good to see you, kid." 

"I second that, esse." Ramon smiled, standing up himself.

"Landon, the man just got moved out of Med Seg." Antonio reminded, seeing Danny's face begin to turn a shade of blue. "Don't put him back in there so quickly."

"Oops." the black man laughed, letting Danny go. The former Marine lieutenant coughed and gasped for air. "Sorry about that, Danny Boy."

"Landon forgets his own strength sometimes." Antonio explained, casually sitting down in a chair.

"It's okay." Danny reassured with a grin. "I'm just glad to be back with you guys."

"Glad to have you back." Ramon nodded as he, Danny and Landon sat down. Suddenly, an interested smile crossed his face and the Hispanic man leaned closer to Danny. "So, who was she?"

"Who was who?" a curious Danny asked, looking at him.

"The hot red-head I saw leaving the infirmary with that Ed Deline guy." Ramon replied with a grin.

"Oh!" Danny realized, looking at his lap. "Mary."

"Mary, huh?" Landon said, getting the same look as Ramon. "Perfect name! Since it sounds like she was sent here from heaven itself."

"She's a hot piece of…" Ramon started with a dreamy sparkle to his eyes.

"She's been my best friend ever since I was two." Danny interrupted, knowing where the bald Mexican was going.

"Please tell me that you've gotten a piece of that." Landon said, looking at him.

"A couple of times." Danny admitted, stirring his scrambled eggs around with his fork. To be honest, thinking about Mary in the context of anything other than a best friend made him feel uncomfortable.

"Okay, the kid's admitted it." an annoyed Antonio sighed, leaning back in his chair. "Now, can we quit the junior high school shit?" He drummed his fingers on the table. "So, according to Mr. McCoy right here, that problem that we took care of won't be coming back."

"Problem you took care of?" a stunned Danny repeated, looking at the dark and gray-haired man near him. "That was another human being, Antonio."

"We've been through this, Danny." Antonio said wearily, putting his hand up. "That guy got what was coming to him. Prison justice isn't pretty, but it's how things work in here."

"I'd say that you'll get used to it," Landon smiled, clapping Danny on the back. "But you'll be out here before that point."

"I hope so." Danny nodded as a guard approached the table.

"McCoy!" the burly man said, getting Danny's attention. "You got a visitor." He looked down at his clipboard. "A Ms. Mancuso?"

"Oh no." a wincing Danny whispered, thinking about the Montecito's bitchy owner. She was one of the last people he wanted to see…ever!

"Damn!" Ramon exclaimed, not noticing the pained look on Danny's face. "You got a harem on the outside, Danny Boy?"

"I wish." Danny sighed, shaking his head as he stood up from the table. "I'll see you guys out in the yard. This shouldn't last long." Walking away, he muttered to himself. "I hope."

To be continued...


	6. Chapter 6

Author's Note: Just been on a writing kick this week...first, finishing up the Christmas fic, and now, getting back to work on this. Thank you for being so patient with me! 

Remember, this is taking place in early Season Three...so Monica hasn't taken a flying lesson quite yet. :D

* * *

Chapter Six

* * *

"Monica." Danny greeted, sitting down on the opposite side of the glass from the older, black-haired woman. "I'm a bit surprised to see you here." 

"Hmm." Mancuso purred, looking approvingly at Danny. "How is it that you can make even THAT look good?"

"Why are you here?" Danny wondered, ignoring the woman's advances.

"Be nice, Danny Boy," Monica replied with a smile. "Or those papers terminating you from the Montecito might just reappear."

"You didn't fire me." a surprised Danny exclaimed.

"Oh, I had to make it look like I fired you." Monica explained, leaning forward and lowering her voice. "I didn't want to, Danny, but I didn't have a choice. The Montecito can't keep a convicted felon on staff! It'd be a P.R. nightmare."

"So what stopped you from actually doing it?" Danny asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Well, Ed and some of the others seem to believe that you're innocent." Monica shrugged.

"Do you?" Danny wondered.

"If Ed thinks that, then it's good enough for me." Monica replied, getting up from her seat. "Play nice with the other kids."

* * *

"All right, baby." Mike whispered to himself, watching Candace Hewitson from the safety of the back seat of a silver Cadillac Escalade and with a pair of binoculars held up to his eyes. "Where you going?" 

Nodding in recognition to a landscaper, the blonde-haired woman walked quickly and quietly from her car to just outside a room on the second floor. Taking a moment to look around, she flipped a strand of hair behind her ear and knocked twice upon the door.

"Okay." an excited Mike said, "Let's see who you've been seeing." As the door swung open and revealed the person inside, the binoculars fell from Cannon's hands and his mouth opened in shock. "Oh, my God!"

* * *

"What's eating you, kid?" Antonio asked from the top bunk that night as he heard Danny let out a sigh from the bunk underneath him. 

"Nothing." Danny replied, tucking his arm behind his head. "I'm just beginning to think that I'm never going to get out of here."

"What the hell are you talking about?" Antonio exclaimed, "Word of advice, McCoy: don't think like that. It's when you give up hope that this slice of hell really begins to take its toll on you."

"I just honestly thought that Ed would have gotten me out by now." Danny replied, rolling onto his side.

"See what I mean?" Antonio said, "It's making you forget that this is Ed freaking Deline we're talking about!" He chuckled and crossed his arms behind his head. "I wouldn't be surprised if the guards woke you up tonight and told you that you could go home." As his laughter subsided, a sigh escaped the gray-haired man and he shook his head. "You don't know how lucky you have it."

"Huh?" an interested Danny asked.

"I mean you've at least got the possibility of getting out of this place really quick, Danny Boy." Antonio explained, "Landon's got a kid on the outside that he's never seen and probably won't until he graduates from high school, and Ramon's become a father and a grandfather while inside of here." One more chuckle escaped him. "As for me? Well, we'll all be ice-skating in Hell before I'm a free man."

"Wow." Danny replied, now feeling guilty for having complained. "I'm sorry, Antonio. I never knew."

"It's all right." Antonio reassured, nodding his head. "Not saying that you don't have reason to complain, Danny Boy. You're one of the good guys! You shouldn't be in here. You should be sending people like me here."

"Malocchio! McCoy!" a guard's gruff voice warned as he pounded on the door. "Lights out means lights out!"

* * *

"Damn." Mike winced as Ed's cherry red Hummer raced into the parking lot and sloppily pulled into the spot next to him. Shaking with anger, Deline didn't even turn off his lights before getting out of his car and slamming the door. Mike couldn't help but be sarcastic. "Nice entrance, Mr. D. I'm sure that the people in the next town heard you..." 

"Shut up." Ed snapped, clearly not in the mood to put up with Mike's crap. "Where are they?"

"Room 224." Mike replied, pointing to the upstairs room.

"And you're absolutely sure that it's him?" Ed asked, walking quickly up some nearby stairs and towards their target.

"Positive." Mike nodded as the pair came to a stop outside the door.

"Good." Ed replied, knocking on the door. "Room service!" There was no response from the inside. "Would you look at that? How rude."

"Maybe we should..." Mike suggested as Ed kicked the door down. "Do that?"

"What the hell?" Candace Hewitson shrieked as she and a gray-haired man tried as fast as they could to get out of the queen bed in the room. It wasn't fast enough though as Ed managed to tackle the man and started punching him in the face, chest and stomach. "What the hell do you think you're doing? STOP IT!"

"Ed!" Mike shouted, trying to separate the two as sirens were suddenly heard. "ED!"

As the sound of the sirens shutting off followed by car doors slamming and footsteps approaching reached the room, Ed finally allowed himself to be pulled away from the now nearly unconscious man. Wiping blood off of his knuckles, he turned to a frightened Candace.

"Your husband should have stayed dead."

To be continued...


	7. Chapter 7

Author's Notes: Well, here we are at the end of yet another fic. I just want to thank everyone who took time to read this story, especially with me taking a break from it to complete the Christmas fic. And extra special thank you to those of you that took the time to review. Your kind words only motivate me to write more. And extra EXTRA special thank you to Leah (Swiperfox) and Elyse (VegasSinner) for being my girls. :D I've already started working on my next fic (a Mike-centered piece), so this isn't the last you'll hear from me. 

By the way, in my head, the part of Antonio has always been played by Mr. Al Pacino, so that's why his last line is what it is. :D Enjoy!

* * *

Chapter Seven

* * *

"Doing better, Danny Boy?" Antonio asked, jumping off of his bunk the next morning. McCoy was still lying face-up in bed, but his eyes were open so Malocchio could tell that he was awake. 

"Not really." Danny sighed, still feeling hopeless despite spending the whole night thinking about what the older man had told him.

"Hey, none of that, all right?" a stern Antonio said, lightly hitting him. "You going to get up and go to breakfast or what?"

"Not hungry." Danny replied, rolling onto his side away from Malocchio.

"All right." Antonio sighed, shaking his head in defeat.

As the cell door slammed shut behind the older man, Danny let out an audible sigh. As the days went on, he could feel the hope of getting out of prison slipping away from him. The brown-haired man began to feel as if he was just going to have to accept that he was stuck here for the rest of life; paying for a crime he didn't commit.

Hearing the door open again, Danny quickly closed his eyes. He knew that it was probably a guard coming to check on him to see why he didn't go to breakfast, so he pretended to still be asleep. His brown eyes opened immediately upon feeling the stranger throw something on him.

"What the..." Danny exclaimed, sitting up instantly. "Ed!"

"God, what a miserable place." the gray-haired man remarked, looking around at the small cell. He smiled at his protégé. "How have you been, kid?"

"What are you doing here?" Danny asked before looking down and noticing that a set of clothes had been thrown across his feet. "What the..."

"You've been cleared, Danny." Ed announced happily, "Time for you to come home."

"No way." a stunned McCoy shook his head, "I've got to be dreaming this."

"This feel like a dream?" Ed smiled before punching Danny in the arm.

"AGH!" Danny exclaimed, wincing and grabbing where Ed had hit him. "That was more like a nightmare!"

"Get dressed, will you?" Ed ordered, chuckling with mirth. "This place makes me depressed."

"How'd you get back here anyway?" Danny wondered.

"What are you? A moron?" Ed asked, acting like he was going to punch Danny again. Luckily, the ex-Marine recoiled in time. "You of all people should know about my connections." He headed for the door to give Danny some privacy. "Now get dressed."

* * *

"Damn!" Danny heard Ramon comment from behind him. Leaving his tie untied, the above-average looking, tall man whirled around to see Antonio, the aforementioned Ramon and Landon all standing near the doorway to the cell. The bald, Hispanic man shook his head as he stepped forward. "No wonder he's got a harem on the outside! Look at him!" 

"Looking sharp there, Danny Boy." Landon agreed, nodding his head. The big, African American man then gestured to the orange jumpsuits on the rest of them. "Get tired of this get-up or what?"

"Guys, I..." Danny started to explain.

"Don't worry." Antonio interrupted, shaking his head. "A guard caught us at the breakfast table; said that you were a free man." A smile crossed the gray and black-haired man's face. "Congratulations."

"Thanks." an appreciative Danny smiled, looking at his newfound friends. "I'm definitely going to miss you guys."

"Keep in touch, esse." Ramon nodded, clapping Danny on the shoulder.

"And see if you can find Ramon here a nice girl on the outside." Landon chimed in with a teasing grin. "God knows that he needs all the help he can get."

"Hey!" Ramon exclaimed, taking a playful swipe at him. "Not cool, big man, not cool."

"It's been a pleasure, Danny." Landon said, ignoring Ramon and enveloping Danny in a tight bear hug. Once again, McCoy found breathing a damn near impossible task. "Like Ramon said, you keep in touch, all right?"

"I will." Danny promised, taking a moment to catch his breath as Landon released him. Sensing that Antonio would want some time alone with his now-former cellmate, Landon and Ramon headed silently for the door. "See you, guys."

"What did I tell you?" Antonio chuckled as the door shut once more behind Landon and Ramon. The former spook of Italian descent shook his head. "Never doubt Ed Deline."

"You'd think that I'd know that by now." Danny nodded, admitting guilt. As a smile reappeared on his face, he offered his hand for the older man to shake. "I don't know how to thank you for everything, Antonio."

"Tell you what." Antonio grinned, pulling McCoy into a hug and somewhat surprising him. "Drop by every once in awhile and don't end up in here again, and we'll call it even, okay?"

"All right." Danny agreed as the door opened again. As Ed and a guard walked inside, the pair broke their embrace.

"The warden needs you to sign a couple of things, Mr. McCoy." the guard said, getting Danny's attention and leading him out of the room.

"He's a good kid." Antonio remarked, sitting down on Danny's old bunk.

"Pain in my ass sometimes." Ed nodded, crossing his arms across his chest. Clearing his throat, he turned around to face Antonio. "I managed to pull some strings. Williams and Gomez are looking at slightly reduced sentences. But..."

"You're not a miracle worker." Antonio nodded, knowing that Ed was about to tell him that he hadn't done the same for him.

"I'm sorry, Tony." Ed apologized, shaking his head.

"It's all right." Antonio waved off, "What's that old saying? As you made your bed, so you must lie in it."

* * *

"Hey!" an excited Mary squealed, dropping everything she was doing and running over to Danny the minute he and Ed walked into the Montecito that afternoon. The red-haired woman giggled as she threw her arms around her best friend. 

"Hey, Mary." Danny greeted, exchanging smiles with Ed as he hugged her back. "Miss me?"

"I'm so glad that you're all right!" Mary nodded as Ed continued on.

"I'm so glad to be back." Danny replied as the pair slowly separated.

"Wow." Sam Marquez commented, walking by. "Looks like someone didn't drop the soap." As she followed her whale into the crowd, she shouted the next bit for the whole casino to hear. "Good job!"

"Glad to see you too." Danny laughed before turning to Mary. "I'm sure that Ed wants me up in the surveillance room."

"Oh." a disappointed Mary said, nodding in understanding.

"But how about we grab lunch later?" Danny suggested, "All that prison food made me crave Lucky Burger like you wouldn't believe."

"Okay." Mary giggled in agreement.

* * *

"Hey!" Mike greeted, getting up from his seat as Danny entered the surveillance room. The bald, African American man opened his arms. "There he is! Our own personal Nevada State Redemption!" 

"Hey Mikey!" Danny replied, giving the other man a high-five.

"Glad to have you back, brother." Mike said, turning that high-five into a hug. "How was it?"

"Eh," Danny joked, "Not a vacation I'd recommend." As he pulled away from Mike, he nodded up at Ed's office. "Ed waiting for me?"

"Yeah." Mike nodded.

* * *

"So?" Danny asked, entering Ed's office. He had been asking his mentor all afternoon about who had set him up and why, but Deline had made him wait until they were at the Montecito, where they could have privacy. 

"So, sit down." Ed replied, motioning to the chair in front of his desk.

"All right." Danny sighed impatiently, doing what he was told. "So?"

"So," Ed said with a sympathetic gleam in his blue eyes. "It turned out that Mr. Hewitson wasn't really dead at all, and that he and the Mrs. were the ones behind all of this."

"Why?" a puzzled Danny shook his head, "What did I ever do to them?"

"Ainsworth." Deline sighed, leaning back in his chair. "That name mean anything to you?"

"Doug." Danny nodded, remembering his fellow Marine. "He was in my unit." His voice suddenly lost its strength and the brown-haired man turned his gaze to the floor. "One of the guys I..."

"Turns out that he was Mr. Hewitson's cousin," Ed explained, "More like his brother when they were growing up." Deline paused not wanting to tell his protégé this next bit as he could tell that the incident from a few years ago where he had to call an air strike in to be basically dropped on his unit still haunted the young man. "I guess the fact that you did what you had to do and got a Silver Star for it..." A disdainful chuckle escaped Deline. "Well, you can read in the papers tomorrow what he thinks about that."

"I did what I had to do, Ed." Danny said, looking back at the older man across the desk. However, it seemed to Ed that McCoy was more reminding himself of that fact.

"Hey," Ed reassured with a smile. "I know that, buddy. Anybody with a brain knows that." He shook his head. "Just because some crazy guy doesn't..."

"I don't seem to know that either sometimes." Danny interrupted, looking at the floor once more. He shook his head slowly. "I still find myself questioning my judgment; wondering if I couldn't have found another way?"

"It's normal." Ed nodded in understanding, "Anyway, don't put any stock in what some schmuck like Richard Hewitson has to say, all right?" A smile crossed the older man's face. "I'm sure that he's getting what's coming to him right now."

* * *

"Excuse me." Antonio politely said, walking up to a table in the cafeteria where Richard Hewitson sat alone. "Are you Richard Hewitson?" 

"Yeah." Hewitson replied nervously, turning around and getting to his feet. The dark-haired man's nervousness seemed to grow upon seeing Landon and Ramon standing behind Antonio, who was staring at him with a fierce look in his dark eyes.

"The same Richard Hewitson that framed Danny McCoy?" Antonio asked.

"That murdering son of a..." Hewitson growled.

"It's definitely him, man." Ramon smiled, nodding at Antonio.

"No question." Landon chimed in.

"All right then." Antonio replied, grinning at his friends. Said grin remained on his face as he turned back to Hewitson, who looked even more nervous then before. "Say hello to my little friend."

Two things seemed to happen in unison as Landon, Ramon and Antonio all punched Hewitson with everything they had: an unconscious Richard Hewitson fell to the floor and guards starting running their way.

The End


End file.
